BILLINGS — While one-sixth of an inch of rain may seem insignificant, it was enough to cause a big headache for the owners and vendors at YesterYears Antique Mall in downtown Billings.
According to owner Lucy Kramer, the precipitation from the weekend backed up a sewage line connected to Third Avenue North in Billings, which flooded the building's basement.
"With all the rainfall that had come, the wastewater flushed back into our building," said Kramer on Tuesday.
See owners and vendors of YesterYears Antique Mall cleaning up the store's water damage below:
Owners, volunteers and vendors started cleaning Sunday morning, after an employee walked into the basement of what is known as the Hart-Albin building to find two inches of wastewater covering the ground, according to Kramer.
"Our floor cleaning person called us and said there was water everywhere... We found out it wasn't water. It was wastewater," said Kramer.
Kramer said anything the water touched that was made out of particle board, including the mall's cabinets, needed to be thrown away. Kramer and her husband, Danny Kramer, spent the day with volunteers disinfecting all wooden materials in the mall.
Tuesday's cleanup effort included vendor Mackay Hull, an 82-year-old antique furniture collector and former surgeon.
"I've been here about an hour and a half," he said. "Just going over some furniture that had water on, like the legs, wiping it down with some Clorox."
While most of Hull's 50-year-old collection remained safe from water damage, he did suffer some losses. Hull's collection includes furniture from the late 1800s to early 1900s, stoneware, toys, and vintage advertisements. Hull said the owners of the antique mall hopped into action immediately, salvaging most of his collection before he arrived.
"I have a big cardboard tobacco sign that's about a $380 piece (seen in the photo below), and it's damaged beyond selling it," Hull said.
The situation has taken an emotional toll on everyone involved.
"It's depressing… And some dealers have it a lot worse than I did," Hull said.
One of Kramer's biggest concerns was the well-being of each of the 80 vendors, who lose potential revenue each day that the store is closed.
"Every business in here is losing the potential for their sales, which means, how do we pay our wages? 'Cuz that's how our employees get paid. We do have that concern," she said.
One of the most devastating losses, Kramer said, was Cuppy's Cafe and the candy corner (seen in the photo below). Cuppy's Cafe, an ice-cream, coffee, and milkshake parlor, only opened two months ago. Kramer said any food items, even if they hadn't been directly touched by the water, were contaminated and needed to be thrown away. She estimated a loss between $30,000 to $50,000 in candy merchandise, alone.
"All of it is wasted 'cuz it was exposed," Kramer said.
The owners hope to reopen YesterYears within the next week, with the exception of the food area. Until then, they face busy days of cleanup and recovery.
"To lose things you worked so hard for, to know that you might not be compensated for anything, to know that... something has happened... It's just so much," Kramer said. "We really would appreciate the community support when we reopen and know that we're doing everything we can."
MTN reached out to the City of Billings Public Works for comment about the sewage system backup. Debi Meling, the director of Public Works, told MTN that an investigation was ongoing and declined a formal interview.
To help the owners or vendors at YesterYears for the next week with restoration, please send Kramer a direct message via Facebook at this link.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and portions were converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
